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Balda
Balda was a German maker based in Dresden. It was founded in 1908 and took the name Balda-Werk Max Baldeweg in 1913. See this page at dresdner-kameras.de. It made a quantity of medium-priced folders before World War II, and its camera production was quite comparable to Welta or Certo, though Baldas as a rule sold for lower prices than either of those cameras. One originality of Balda was to sell cameras to many other companies for resale under their own brand (today this would be called OEM). Perhaps as part of this strategy, Balda cameras were fitted with a very wide range lenses, from the low cost self-branded triplets through Meyers and Ludwigs, to the high end Schneider Xenars and Xenons, and Zeiss Tessars and Biotars. After the war, Balda was nationalized in East Germany in 1946, while its founder Max Baldeweg fled to West Germany to start Balda-Werk Bűnde. The East German plant began to make own Ovus shutters which were no Compur clones but had all the functions of the West-German Compur shutter. The Cludor and Vebur shutters were derived from th Ovus. In 1950 Zeiss Ikon took over the production of the shutters. After trademark litigation similar to that involving the Carl Zeiss companies and Zeiss Ikon companies the name of the East German company was changed to Belca-Werk' in 1951. It continued for some time to produce folders like the little 35mm Beltica, and was absorbed into VEB Kamera-Werke Niedersedlitz in 1956 See this page at dresdner-kameras.de. .' Max Baldeweg set up a new company called Balda (Balda Kamera-Werk), this time based in Bünde, West Germany. This company produced a series of 35mm and medium-format rollfilm cameras, some of them being sold by Porst under the Hapo brand. Balda later produced cameras for both 126 and 110 film cartridge format. Balda Dresden, later Belca 35mm film, folding * Baldina * Jubilette * Super Baldina (coupled rangefinder) 120 film 4.5×6cm, folding * Baldax (4.5×6, #0 or #00 shutter size) * Baldaxette I (4.5×6, coupled rangefinder) 6×6cm, folding * Baldax (6×6, #0 shutter size) * Baldaxette II (6×6, coupled rangefinder) 6×9cm, folding * Baldafix (6×9) * Juwella (6×9) * Pontina (6×9 and 4.5×6), also sold as Hapo 10 and Hapo 45 * Super Pontura (6×9, coupled rangefinder) 6×9cm, box * Balda Box (6×9) * Balda Frontbox (6×9) * Poka (6×9) * Rollbox (6×9) 127 film, folding * Piccochic (3/4) * Baldi (3×4) * Rigona (3×4) Plate models Belca 35mm film Folding * Beltica I (vertical style folding, like the pre-war Baldina) * Beltica II (horizontal style folding) Rigid * Belmira Stereo * Belplasca 120 film, folding * Belfoca * Belfoca I * Belfoca II Balda Bünde 35mm film Folding * Baldalette * Baldina * Baldini * Baldinette a modified version was sold as the Rival 35 * Mess-Baldinette (uncoupled rangefinder) * Mess-Rigona (uncoupled rangefinder), also sold as Hapo 35 and Rival 35 * Rigona * Super Baldina (coupled rangefinder) * Super Baldinette (coupled rangefinder) Rigid * Baldina * Super Baldina (coupled rangefinder) * Balda Baldinette II Balda Kamera-Werk, Bünde * Baldessa / Baldessa I * Baldessa F/RF/L-RF/LF-RF * Baldessamat F / RF * Baldamatic / Baldamatic I / II * Super Baldamatic I / II / III Ultra compact * C 35 * CA 35, and Voigtländer Vito C * CE 35 * CS 35 * Mini 35 * Scout 35 * Minox 35 series - the entire line of Minox 35 cameras was manufactured by Balda Kamera-Werk in Bünde, West Germany 110 film * Minox 110 (Manufactured by Balda Kamera-Werk) 126 film * Nizo Elektronik 1000 (made for Niezoldi & Krämer) * Argus Lady Carefree 120 film 6×6cm, folding * Baldi 29 * Baldix * Mess-Baldix (uncoupled rangefinder), also sold as Hapo 66e * Baldax * Super Baldax (coupled rangefinder) 6×6cm, collapsible * Baldixette / Baldixette I / Baldixette II 6×9cm, folding * Baldalux Notes Links In English: * [http://www.flickr.com/groups/balda/ Flickr group Balda Cameras] * Balda section at Retrography.com by Simon Simonsen, Denmark * Balda C-series subminiatures at submin.com * Balda Cameras Price Guide at collectiblend.com * Balda at Pocketable History by J. Noir In German: * Company history at dresdner-kameras.de * Balda page at Frank Petermann's site In French: * Balda page at Mario Groleau's website * Balda page at Collection G. Even's site * Balda cameras and Belca cameras at www.collection-appareils.fr In Spanish: * Balda at Historia de Bolsillo by J. Noir Category: German camera makers Category: German shutter makers Category: East Germany *